Second Chance
by TrudiRose
Summary: Things aren't always what they seem. Oneshot.


SECOND CHANCE

_Disclaimer: Disney owns Disney's characters._

The short, elderly white-haired man hesitantly opened the door to the castle. "Hello?" he asked tentatively.

Lumiere whispered to Cogsworth. "Poor fellow must have lost his way in the woods."

"Keep quiet. Maybe he'll go away," Cogsworth whispered back.

The rotund old man looked around. "Is someone there?" he called humbly. "I don't mean to intrude, but I've lost my horse and I need a place to stay for the night."

Lumiere came forward. "Of course, monsieur, you are welcome here." Over Cogsworth's protests, he led the tubby little man to a comfortable armchair.

Mrs. Potts raced in on a tea cart. "How would you like a nice spot of tea, sir? It'll warm you up in no time."

"Thank you," the traveller said gratefully, looking with amazement at the enchanted objects. He took a sip of tea. The teacup giggled. "His moustache tickles, Mama!"

"Oh!" said the old man in surprise, seeing that the cup had a little boy's face. "Hello!"

Suddenly a door slammed, and a gust of wind blew out the fire in the fireplace. The objects looked frightened. A dark shape appeared in the doorway.

"There's a stranger here," a fierce voice growled. Lumiere and Cogsworth tried to explain, but a ferocious roar silenced them and sent them diving for cover.

The old man turned to see a terrifying Beast looming over him. The monster was massive, an unnatural creature that seemed like an unholy mixture of bear, buffalo, and lion, and yet like none of these. But its blue eyes appeared human, which somehow made it all the more monstrous. Its fangs and claws were wickedly sharp and deadly. The little old man cowered in terror.

"You're not welcome here!" growled the Beast.

"I-I'm sorry," stammered the other, trembling. "I meant no harm. I just needed a place to stay."

"I'll give you a place to stay!" The Beast seized the little old man in his massive paw and dragged him up the stairs to a dungeon. He threw his captive in roughly and slammed the door.

But unexpectedly, the dungeon door flew open. A blinding light made the Beast reel back. The prisoner emerged from the doorway - but he was changing. As the Beast watched, the pudgy little man was growing taller and thinner. His nondescript clothes transmuted into a shimmering blue robe adorned with stars. A white beard appeared on his face, then grew and lengthened till it reached his chest. His eyes were infinitely wise, and filled with sorrow as he gazed at the Beast.

"She was right," the old man said sadly. "You have not changed at all."

"What do you mean?" growled the Beast in confusion. "Who are you?"

"I am a sorceror," the old man replied gravely. "I am acquainted with the Enchantress who cursed you. We recently had occasion to speak. I told her I believed she had been too harsh with you. 'No girl has come to his castle in all these years, and his time is nearly up,' I reminded her. 'Surely he has learned his lesson by now. But if the last rose petal falls, he will remain a beast forever, without ever having had the opportunity to prove that he has changed. This is unjust.'"

The Beast stared at the sorceror, comprehension and horror dawning on his face.

"She was skeptical," the sorceror went on. "She told me, 'That one? He's too arrogant and selfish to ever change. His heart is as cold as the day I cursed him. But if you wish to see for yourself, you have my consent.' I told her that I would give you the same test she did 10 years ago - a cold, wet, elderly traveller seeking shelter from the storm. I was certain you would have learned from your previous experience, and this time would allow the poor traveller to stay for the night. After all, the last time you turned someone away, you suffered a terrible punishment for your selfishness. Surely this time would be different. And once you proved you had changed, I could lift your curse and end your torment."

He sighed. "But I see now that she was right. You have not learned anything from your ordeal, and I can do nothing for you. Indeed," he added ruefully, "you treated me far worse than you did your first visitor. Would you really have left a frail old man in a dungeon to die?"

"I-I didn't know," whispered the Beast. "I beg your forgiveness--"

The sorceror shook his head. "You said the same last time. It means nothing. You were meant to learn kindness and compassion for those weaker than yourself - not simply how to beg mercy from those more powerful."

He noticed the enchanted objects, who had managed to hop up the stairs and now hovered anxiously in the doorway. "Your servants, in contrast, were kind to me. They shall be rewarded. Yes, even you, Cogsworth," he added with a smile, seeing the clock's uncertainty. (He had tried to stop Lumiere's hospitality, after all.) "I know you were only trying to protect me. You know your master's temper all too well, I'm afraid."

The sorceror waved his hands and muttered a quick incantation. The candelabra transformed into the suave maitre d'hotel he had been before the curse. The clock metamorphosed into a short, round majordomo. The teapot changed into a plump cook, while the teacup was now a tousled five-year-old boy. They stared at each other in amazement.

"Bless you, sir," whispered Mrs. Potts with tears in her eyes. The other murmured their thanks as well, their faces shining with wonder and joy.

The sorceror inclined his head in acknowledgement. "As your spell has been broken, and you are now human again, you are free to go. He has no hold on you any more."

Mrs. Potts looked over at the Beast whose rages had dominated their lives for so long. He looked utterly broken, all the fight gone out of him. She felt a stirring of pity for him. She turned to the sorceror and said humbly, "If it's all right with you, sir, I don't mind staying here. The poor dear will need us more than ever now, I think."

Cogsworth and Lumiere looked at each other. Then Cogsworth cleared his throat. "I'm still head of the household," he declared importantly. "I certainly have no intention of shirking my responsibilities simply because of a...a change in appearance. Things will be run much more efficiently now that we have a human staff again!"

"I will stay as well," Lumiere agreed.

The sorceror smiled at them. "Your loyalty does you credit. I see that you are indeed worthy of your reward." He turned back to the Beast with a stern expression. "You would do well to learn from your servants. They show more kindness to you now than you have ever shown them in all their years of service. But they are now free to leave whenever they wish, so you would be wise to treat them better than you have done in the past."

The Beast nodded miserably without speaking. His eyes were desolate. The sorceror softened. "I am truly sorry I cannot help you," he said gently. "But you brought this upon yourself. You have had 10 years to mend your ways. I am afraid I see little hope for you, for your time is fast running out." He straightened. "Farewell. I wish you luck." With a puff of smoke, the sorceror vanished.

The room was silent. Then the Beast threw back his head and roared - a terrible sound of pure animal anguish, torn from the depths of his soul.

Lumiere, Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts stood awkardly, uncertain what to do. Then Mrs. Potts walked over to the Beast, so lost and alone. "Sir?" she asked softly. "Would you like a nice cup of tea? It'll make you feel better."

The Beast stared at her, incredulous at the sheer absurdity of the offer. He had lost what was likely his last chance at humanity. He was doomed to spend the rest of his life as a monster. Under the circumstances, a cup of tea was scant consolation.

He opened his mouth to snarl at her. But it occurred to him that the sorceror had spoken truly. Human again, his servants were free to resume their lives and leave him alone in the bleak, barren castle. They had no reason to stay.

Yet, they did stay, although he had certainly done nothing to deserve their devotion.

Mrs. Potts was watching him with motherly concern, a worry line creasing her forehead. Her eyes were kind as she held out the tea - the only comfort she knew how to offer. She meant well, he knew.

He bit back the angry retort he had been about to make, and forced himself to smile at the cook. "Thank you, Mrs. Potts," he told her softly. "I would like a cup of tea."

THE END

_Author's note: This story came out of two thoughts I had recently. One is that the Beast was an idiot to lock up Maurice. (No offense - you all know I love Beast.) An old woman came to the castle for shelter; he turned her away, and she inflicted a terrible curse on him. 10 years later, an old MAN comes to the castle for shelter. You'd think the Beast would have learned from the last time and made sure to be especially nice this time, but nope - he's even worse than before. For all he knew, Maurice could have been yet another magical person come to test him. So, that was "thought number one." _

_I originally was going to just have the sorceror proclaim the Beast unworthy and doomed, the sorceror would disappear, the Beast would howl, and that would be the end of the story. But then "thought number two" came into play, which was that the enchanted objects really got short shrift in the movie. Even when the Beast became kind and noble and selfless, he was only kind and noble and selfless to Belle. He never thanked the servants for their help, or apologized for treating them so badly. After Belle left, he didn't care that the castle was under attack, because he had nothing to live for (and I do find that scene incredibly moving)...but he also didn't care that the attack on the castle also put the servants in grave danger. What if they'd all been smashed by the villagers? So with that in mind, I thought I'd like to see the Beast come to appreciate the servants and realize all they did for him. _

_I do realize that this softens the ending a bit, which may not be to everyone's taste. So if you prefer things darker and more unhappy, feel free to imagine that the servants left the castle, went back to their lives, and abandoned the Beast to be alone and miserable forever. I aim to please. :)_


End file.
